Man Overboard! - HMCS Montreal - Search for missing Canadian sailor called off.
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very sad day indeed 
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Does anyone know if he had a family. Is there anything that they might need at this time?
C
Crazy_Eyes
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I pray for a miracle to happen and he survives...somehow, and if not then I hope atleast his body is found so his loved ones can see to a proper funeral. R.I.P
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http://www.herald.ns.ca/stories/2005/02/11/fNovaScotia148.raw.html
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Friday, February 11, 2005 Back The Halifax Herald Limited
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Sister sure seaman didn't kill himself
'My brother had too much to live for'
By JEFFREY SIMPSON / Staff Reporter
A relative of the sailor from Halifax who went missing from HMCS Montreal in the Baltic Sea this week says she's convinced he wouldn't have committed suicide.
Leading Seaman Robert LeBlanc wasn't depressed and had no reason to take his own life, a woman who identified herself as the man's sister told this newspaper Thursday.
"My brother had too much to live for; we'll put it this way," said the woman, who didn't want her name published.
She declined to describe the relationship her brother had with his fellow sailors or comment on whether she suspected other people might have been involved in his disappearance.
"At the present time, I cannot answer that question," she said.
The navy said Wednesday that Leading Seaman LeBlanc, 24, was last seen having a cigarette at about 11:30 p.m. Tuesday in the breezeway on the port side of the ship, an enclosed area used as a smoking area.
But his sister said that's also unlikely.
"He's never put a cigarette up to his mouth before in his life," the woman said. "He's yelled at me for smoking, for God's sakes, so he's not a smoker."
Leading Seaman LeBlanc was reported missing when he failed to show up for duty as a night steward more than 90 minutes after he was last seen. Although there are two doors from the breezeway leading outside, everyone on board had been ordered to remain off the upper deck due to the risk posed by frozen sea spray. The command was broadcast over the ship's intercom, and signs were posted on all exits, the navy said. Conditions at the time were clear and calm.
Leading Seaman LeBlanc's sister said she's concerned about the information that has been made public about her brother.
"He's being portrayed as something he's not," she said. "The image of him is being brought out . . . the wrong way, and it's not fair, and he's not alive anymore to defend himself."
The unmarried man, whose parents live in Western Canada, was an experienced sailor who joined the navy in 2000 and had served on two voyages as part of the war on terror.
"He was a good guy," his sister said. "That's all I'll say."
She said she didn't want any further information about her brother or her family made public.
"I don't need the media coming to my door," she said. "My family doesn't want anything to do with the media.
"You guys are horrible at times."
Lt.-Cmdr. Denise LaViolette, a spokeswoman for the navy, acknowledged that officials erred in saying that Leading Seaman LeBlanc was smoking.
"It's our fault," she said. "The breezeway is a smoking lounge. We automatically assumed he was having a cigarette.
"That's the only place on board a ship people are allowed to smoke. There are very few non-smokers that normally hang around there."
The sailor was a non-smoker and didn't drink either, she said.
Two military police officers from the National Investigation Service will head to Poland from Halifax on the weekend to meet HMCS Montreal when it arrives in port, she said.
The navy urges the public and military personnel to report any information that may shed some light on what happened to Leading Seaman LeBlanc, Lt.-Cmdr. LaViolette said.
"If somebody thought he was depressive, we'd like to know. If somebody thought there might be some issues with crew members, we'd like to know. If somebody saw him fall, we'd like to know."
Lt.-Cmdr. LaViolette said investigators are keen to examine any possible scenario.
She wouldn't comment on whether anyone had raised concerns about the sailor.
"Even if I knew that, I wouldn't be able to tell you," she said.
If investigators determine the sailor's disappearance was the result an accident, the matter will be handed over to a board of inquiry, Lt.-Cmdr. LaViolette said.
"If their initial findings indicate that the death is of a suspicious nature, then the investigation would remain within (the military police's) purview," she said.
Leading Seaman LeBlanc had been transferred to HMCS Montreal from HMCS Iroquois in December specifically for the current NATO operation, the navy said.
The search for him was called off Wednesday after several ships and helicopters scoured the sea about 50 kilometres off the coast of Poland.
Lt.-Cmdr. LaViolette said the ship continued operations with the NATO fleet Thursday and will arrive in Gdynia, Poland, today as originally planned. At the time the sailor vanished, the warship had been at sea for three days after stopping in Denmark.
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Friday, February 11, 2005 Back The Halifax Herald Limited
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sister sure seaman didn't kill himself
'My brother had too much to live for'
By JEFFREY SIMPSON / Staff Reporter
A relative of the sailor from Halifax who went missing from HMCS Montreal in the Baltic Sea this week says she's convinced he wouldn't have committed suicide.
Leading Seaman Robert LeBlanc wasn't depressed and had no reason to take his own life, a woman who identified herself as the man's sister told this newspaper Thursday.
"My brother had too much to live for; we'll put it this way," said the woman, who didn't want her name published.
She declined to describe the relationship her brother had with his fellow sailors or comment on whether she suspected other people might have been involved in his disappearance.
"At the present time, I cannot answer that question," she said.
The navy said Wednesday that Leading Seaman LeBlanc, 24, was last seen having a cigarette at about 11:30 p.m. Tuesday in the breezeway on the port side of the ship, an enclosed area used as a smoking area.
But his sister said that's also unlikely.
"He's never put a cigarette up to his mouth before in his life," the woman said. "He's yelled at me for smoking, for God's sakes, so he's not a smoker."
Leading Seaman LeBlanc was reported missing when he failed to show up for duty as a night steward more than 90 minutes after he was last seen. Although there are two doors from the breezeway leading outside, everyone on board had been ordered to remain off the upper deck due to the risk posed by frozen sea spray. The command was broadcast over the ship's intercom, and signs were posted on all exits, the navy said. Conditions at the time were clear and calm.
Leading Seaman LeBlanc's sister said she's concerned about the information that has been made public about her brother.
"He's being portrayed as something he's not," she said. "The image of him is being brought out . . . the wrong way, and it's not fair, and he's not alive anymore to defend himself."
The unmarried man, whose parents live in Western Canada, was an experienced sailor who joined the navy in 2000 and had served on two voyages as part of the war on terror.
"He was a good guy," his sister said. "That's all I'll say."
She said she didn't want any further information about her brother or her family made public.
"I don't need the media coming to my door," she said. "My family doesn't want anything to do with the media.
"You guys are horrible at times."
Lt.-Cmdr. Denise LaViolette, a spokeswoman for the navy, acknowledged that officials erred in saying that Leading Seaman LeBlanc was smoking.
"It's our fault," she said. "The breezeway is a smoking lounge. We automatically assumed he was having a cigarette.
"That's the only place on board a ship people are allowed to smoke. There are very few non-smokers that normally hang around there."
The sailor was a non-smoker and didn't drink either, she said.
Two military police officers from the National Investigation Service will head to Poland from Halifax on the weekend to meet HMCS Montreal when it arrives in port, she said.
The navy urges the public and military personnel to report any information that may shed some light on what happened to Leading Seaman LeBlanc, Lt.-Cmdr. LaViolette said.
"If somebody thought he was depressive, we'd like to know. If somebody thought there might be some issues with crew members, we'd like to know. If somebody saw him fall, we'd like to know."
Lt.-Cmdr. LaViolette said investigators are keen to examine any possible scenario.
She wouldn't comment on whether anyone had raised concerns about the sailor.
"Even if I knew that, I wouldn't be able to tell you," she said.
If investigators determine the sailor's disappearance was the result an accident, the matter will be handed over to a board of inquiry, Lt.-Cmdr. LaViolette said.
"If their initial findings indicate that the death is of a suspicious nature, then the investigation would remain within (the military police's) purview," she said.
Leading Seaman LeBlanc had been transferred to HMCS Montreal from HMCS Iroquois in December specifically for the current NATO operation, the navy said.
The search for him was called off Wednesday after several ships and helicopters scoured the sea about 50 kilometres off the coast of Poland.
Lt.-Cmdr. LaViolette said the ship continued operations with the NATO fleet Thursday and will arrive in Gdynia, Poland, today as originally planned. At the time the sailor vanished, the warship had been at sea for three days after stopping in Denmark.
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More from the Ottawa Citizen:
Navy blasted for 'theories' on missing sailor
Statements of 'pure conjecture' hurt family, investigation: ombudsman
Mike Blanchfield
The Ottawa Citizen
Tuesday, February 15, 2005
1 | 2 | NEXT >>
The Canadian Forces ombudsman says he has concerns about how the navy investigated the disappearance of a seaman from the deck of a warship in the Baltic Sea last week.
"We have concerns about statements that were made early on by the navy," ombudsman Andre Marin said yesterday.
Mr. Marin said the navy initially said Leading Seaman Robert Leblanc, 24, was out on deck of the HMCS Montreal, which was off the Polish coast during a NATO exercise, to have a cigarette or "take a look at the stars," but has since had to retract the statements. The search for Leading Seaman Leblanc's body has been abandoned.
Leading Seaman Leblanc's family and friends were shocked because he was a fitness buff who didn't smoke, said Mr. Marin. "It's pure conjecture. There's not the faintest of evidence to support either one of these theories," said Mr. Marin.
"The effect of this is that it's very upsetting to the family who are trying to have confidence in the organization to get to the bottom of it. And finally, it affects the quality of the investigation."
Isabelle Savard, spokeswoman for Defence Minister Bill Graham, said the military police's national investigations unit is conducting a thorough investigation.
"We trust that the navy is undertaking every measure possible to understand the events that unfolded that day when the leading seaman ended up missing at sea," said Ms. Savard.
The navy is expected to convene a board of inquiry later this week into the Leblanc incident. But the navy has called on the ombudsman's office to consult on the upcoming probe. The ombudsman's senior legal counsel, Barb Findlay, and lead investigator Gareth Jones, are to meet with navy officials in Halifax on Thursday.
Mr. Marin was critical of how the Forces investigates non-combat deaths in a recent report that examined a 1992 tragedy in which an infantryman was run over by an armoured personnel carrier during a war game.
Mr. Marin's report into the death of 29-year-old Master Cpl. Rick Wheeler made almost three dozen recommendations, many of them having to do with shortcomings in how military investigators handle evidence, preserve death scenes and take statements from witnesses immediately following a death.
A key recommendation was for the Forces to immediately call in the national investigation service of military police. Mr. Marin said the NIS didn't reach the Montreal until last weekend, several days after the tragedy.
"If you had a civilian disappearing off the deck of a vessel in the middle of the ocean, the police would be there first thing," he said. "You want to make sure that they get to the evidence first, to make sure all the traces, all the clues are picked up."
Mr. Marin said he's also concerned the navy may inadvertently be repeating the same mistake it made 13 years ago in Master Cpl. Wheeler's case -- blaming a serviceman for his own death.
In Master Cpl. Wheeler's case, an initial investigation concluded he was partially responsible for his own death because he should have gotten up and out of the way of the vehicle that killed him. At the time, Master Cpl. Wheeler was playing dead in a war game.
Subsequent military investigations cleared Master Cpl. Wheeler, as did Mr. Marin's report.
Mr. Marin said he hoped the briefing by his officials would help the navy avoid "tunnel vision" in the way it conducts its board of inquiry.
The statements made by the navy may have already adversely affected some of Leading Seaman Leblanc's fellow sailors, said Mr. Marin.
"Other people on the ship will be reading these press reports," said Mr. Marin. "Will they be prepared to give an independent account, or will they be influenced by the formal statements of the navy?"
© The Ottawa Citizen 2005
Navy blasted for 'theories' on missing sailor
Statements of 'pure conjecture' hurt family, investigation: ombudsman
Mike Blanchfield
The Ottawa Citizen
Tuesday, February 15, 2005
1 | 2 | NEXT >>
The Canadian Forces ombudsman says he has concerns about how the navy investigated the disappearance of a seaman from the deck of a warship in the Baltic Sea last week.
"We have concerns about statements that were made early on by the navy," ombudsman Andre Marin said yesterday.
Mr. Marin said the navy initially said Leading Seaman Robert Leblanc, 24, was out on deck of the HMCS Montreal, which was off the Polish coast during a NATO exercise, to have a cigarette or "take a look at the stars," but has since had to retract the statements. The search for Leading Seaman Leblanc's body has been abandoned.
Leading Seaman Leblanc's family and friends were shocked because he was a fitness buff who didn't smoke, said Mr. Marin. "It's pure conjecture. There's not the faintest of evidence to support either one of these theories," said Mr. Marin.
"The effect of this is that it's very upsetting to the family who are trying to have confidence in the organization to get to the bottom of it. And finally, it affects the quality of the investigation."
Isabelle Savard, spokeswoman for Defence Minister Bill Graham, said the military police's national investigations unit is conducting a thorough investigation.
"We trust that the navy is undertaking every measure possible to understand the events that unfolded that day when the leading seaman ended up missing at sea," said Ms. Savard.
The navy is expected to convene a board of inquiry later this week into the Leblanc incident. But the navy has called on the ombudsman's office to consult on the upcoming probe. The ombudsman's senior legal counsel, Barb Findlay, and lead investigator Gareth Jones, are to meet with navy officials in Halifax on Thursday.
Mr. Marin was critical of how the Forces investigates non-combat deaths in a recent report that examined a 1992 tragedy in which an infantryman was run over by an armoured personnel carrier during a war game.
Mr. Marin's report into the death of 29-year-old Master Cpl. Rick Wheeler made almost three dozen recommendations, many of them having to do with shortcomings in how military investigators handle evidence, preserve death scenes and take statements from witnesses immediately following a death.
A key recommendation was for the Forces to immediately call in the national investigation service of military police. Mr. Marin said the NIS didn't reach the Montreal until last weekend, several days after the tragedy.
"If you had a civilian disappearing off the deck of a vessel in the middle of the ocean, the police would be there first thing," he said. "You want to make sure that they get to the evidence first, to make sure all the traces, all the clues are picked up."
Mr. Marin said he's also concerned the navy may inadvertently be repeating the same mistake it made 13 years ago in Master Cpl. Wheeler's case -- blaming a serviceman for his own death.
In Master Cpl. Wheeler's case, an initial investigation concluded he was partially responsible for his own death because he should have gotten up and out of the way of the vehicle that killed him. At the time, Master Cpl. Wheeler was playing dead in a war game.
Subsequent military investigations cleared Master Cpl. Wheeler, as did Mr. Marin's report.
Mr. Marin said he hoped the briefing by his officials would help the navy avoid "tunnel vision" in the way it conducts its board of inquiry.
The statements made by the navy may have already adversely affected some of Leading Seaman Leblanc's fellow sailors, said Mr. Marin.
"Other people on the ship will be reading these press reports," said Mr. Marin. "Will they be prepared to give an independent account, or will they be influenced by the formal statements of the navy?"
© The Ottawa Citizen 2005
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